Andrew Charnesky

Problem: How do you consolidate a $600 billion fragmented home services industry when every acquisition increases operational complexity? Most people think home services consolidation is "buy more companies, hope for synergies." WRONG. Peter Connolly and Andrew Hollod at Cobepa solved this by building PLATFORMS, not portfolios. Here's what they did differently: Heartland Home Services (December 2020): Andrew Hollod led the investment - assembled a platform of recognized brands across Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Wisconsin. Ned Stevens (November 2022): Peter Connolly and Andrew Hollod co-led - acquired from AVALT, rebranded to Ned's Home, expanded from single-service (gutter cleaning) to full exterior home services. The pattern most miss: They didn't just buy companies. They bought INFRASTRUCTURE that could absorb future acquisitions systematically. What separates their approach: Board representation ensuring operational oversight Geographic density strategy - dominate regions before expanding Service expansion within existing customer base (Ned's rebrand proves this) The arbitrage: Most PE firms acquire home services companies at market multiples hoping organic growth and cost cuts get them to a decent exit. Peter and Andrew built platforms that acquire at below-market multiples, integrate systematically, cross-sell services, and exit at exponentially higher multiples because they're not selling a collection of companies - they're selling a MACHINE. This is the difference between buying revenue and building enterprise value. But here's what's missing: You've built the acquisition machine. You've built the platform infrastructure. But without WORLD-CLASS customer acquisition systems and lifetime value expansion, you're leaving massive exit value on the table. Peter Connolly, Andrew Hollod - let me run the customer acquisition systems for your platforms. Not manage. RUN. Heartland and Ned's Home have the service expansion infrastructure. What they need is the tracking infrastructure that turns: First-time gutter cleaning customer → power washing → window cleaning → lawn treatment subscriber $200 transaction → $2,400 lifetime value with complete revenue attribution Ad spend optimization based on ACTUAL customer acquisition costs and lifetime value, not clicks I'll build the systems that maximize customer lifetime value across your entire service stack and prove which acquisition channels are actually driving profitable growth at scale. You built platforms that can absorb acquisitions. I build the engines that transform market-multiple businesses into exponentially higher-value exits. Peter Connolly Andrew Hollod Jean-Marie Laurent Josi Let's Speak.

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Ashley Smith of Vermilion Capital just closed Fund ll. What advice would Ashley Smith give her fellow emerging managers about fund raising for a vc fund? part 3 Create a formal re-up campaign. Begin with existing LPs early, share a clear Fund I review, specify what remains unchanged, explain what changes in Fund II, and ask directly for renewal and increased commitments. Vermilion kept its thesis but increased check sizes, a simple and legible evolution. Make community a fundraising asset. Smith credits a network built over nearly two decades—former colleagues, founders, CEOs, co-investors, and LPs—not transactional networking. For an emerging manager, regular high-value convenings, useful introductions, transparent updates, and helping others before asking are compounding fundraising infrastructure. Protect focus and underwriting discipline. Smith emphasizes passing on good companies that are not “her company.” That discipline is fundraise-relevant: LPs are ultimately underwriting whether the manager can preserve a differentiated strategy when attractive but off-thesis opportunities appear. The key takeaway For a new GP, the goal is not simply to accumulate LP commitments. It is to create enough clarity, evidence, and relationship equity that initial backers want to recommit at a larger size. Smith’s result—95% dollar-weighted Fund I re-up participation—suggests that repeatable specialization and LP trust are more powerful than broad but shallow fundraising reach.

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An emerging VC manager's fundraising lessons... the first two funds are a grind. Now, we’re on our third fund, it feels like we’re almost over the hump, but fundraising never gets easy for most of us. I want to congratulate the emerging VC firms presenting at this year’s RAISE Global conference. As former RAISE presenters, and (soon-to-graduate) emerging managers, we thought we’d share this LP Translator, a lighthearted guide to decoding what LPs really mean during the fundraising process. Fellow GPs, which ones did I miss? 👇 The LP Translator 📣 "Let’s stay in touch.” Translation: We’re not interested. “We want to see your track record develop.” Translation: Either we don't believe in your strategy, or we’re focused on managers with more buzz. “We’re not allocating to new managers right now.” Translation: We’re not allocating to you right now. "Show us your deals so we can get to know you.” Translation: We’d like free co-invests if you get something hot. “We need to see more DPI before we commit.” Translation: We don’t really understand VC, but we’re pretending to. “We’re fully allocated for this year; check in early next year.” Translation: Next year we’ll still be fully allocated (just not to you). “Call us before final close.”  Translation: I’m too polite to say no at this time, so I’m kicking the can down the road. “Your fund is too small.”  Translation: Okay, that one might actually be true (for some LPs). “We went through your data room and want to meet face-to-face.” Translation: We’re genuinely interested, keep going! “Can you send us your LPA for signature?” Translation: Let’s go! 🚀 -------------------------- Fundraising is a long game, longer than we ever expected. We're now seeing how LP relationships are built across several funds, not several months. If they’re investing time to learn about you and your strategy, that’s your best signal of real interest. #emergingmanager #venturecapital #LP #RAISEGLOBAL

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